This was picked up after it had received a Beckett Raw Card Review, but I chose not to send it in to be graded. In fact, I pulled it out of the container. Since it was a sticker, it was pretty easy. Why would I do this? Why would I risk damage to this card? Two reasons. I need it to sit in a binder with my other 1954 Topps Atlanta Braves, and, I wanted to touch it. I wanted to run my fingers across it. I had to touch the edges.

Well, if I thought the 54 Aaron was unattainable, this one was even further out of reach. Why is the 52 Mathews so far out of reach of most Braves collectors? Well, it’s the rookie card of a legit Hall of Fame player who is, incidentally, the only player to wear the Braves uniform in Boston, Milwaukee and Atlanta. On top of that, the card isn’t just in the infamous 1952 Topps set, it’s one of the high numbers, and among the high numbers, it was single printed. Very, very scarce. It is also the last card in the set, which, means any number of the cards that found their way into the hands of children in 1952 were at the back of a stack of cards held together by a rubber band.

Well, mine came encased is an SGC case, but a little patience and a flat head screw driver allowed me to bust the case without harming the card. I was more than a little stressed when I tried this.

I asked this on Twitter, and dayf says I made the right move, but I want to put this to all of you. Did I make a huge mistake opening up the graded containers for these cards? I have no intention of ever selling these cards. I really, really wanted them to sit in the binder with my other Braves cards. That said, there’s a part of me, that wonders if I didn’t make a mistake.

Third Acquisition: Samantha Jayne Mays

I almost forgot my third acquisition.

This one is, of course, the biggest of my three acquisitions. On May 5th, my wife and I flew to Las Vegas. We rented a car and drove to Mountain View Hospital where we met the little girl, born three days earlier, that we would be adopting into our family. She is a delight and a blessing. As many of you who are parents can probably guess, my life has changed immeasurably for the better.

Yes you made the wise move in freeing the cards from their cases (so they can be with their cardboard brethren). And your third acquisition is the best of all…a true rookie! At least she wasn’t in a graded case you had to break her out of it. Congrats on your newest addition!